Outdoor Degree

Pleasant Hill Lodge 380
In conjunction with
MASONIC DISTRICT 108
Invites you to an outdoor, at night, in-the-woods MM Degree at the
Civil War Weekend
Liendo Plantation, Waller County, Texas

Liendo, a focal point of area social activity in the 1800’s, is a plantation built in 1853 by Leonard Waller Groce on land purchased from an original Spanish land grant to Justo Liendo of over 67,000 acres. It now consists of 2,000 acres and hosts civil war re-enactors each November. Nearly 1,000 participants from as far away as Utah, and over 5,000 spectators are expected this year. The participants will be encamped with their units, some with their families. Demonstrators will be showcasing their skills in blacksmithing, spinning, quilting, soap making,& furniture making in addition to the civil war battle reenactment famous throughout the USA. A number of vendors will be set up on the grounds to market period appropriate items and clothing.

Frontier Masonic Lodge 28, recently reconstituted, will set up a Civi lWar era outdoor Masonic Lodge open for tours during the day. Frontier Lodge is a ‘period lodge’ and all lodge members dress in mid-1800’sclothing. They will make every effort to represent how an outdoor lodge looked from that era. They will open lodge at 6 pm, welcome everyone, make a few announcements and close lodge. Pleasant Hill 380 will then open a called MM's Lodge immediately thereafter and confer MM's degree. The degree team will primarily be comprised of members from District 108 thru the Masters, Wardens, and SecretarysAssociation. A number of reenactors, some possibly on horseback, will assist the Tiler in his effort to guard against the approach of cowans and eavesdroppers. All degree team participants should attempt to wear some clothing reminiscent of the civil war era, even those attending may want to do the same but, of course, are not required. Degree Team may come at 4 pm and get some help with dress if you are unable to come up with something yourself. Observers should bring lawn chairs for you own comfort as there will be only a limited number of hay bales for seating during the degree. The lodge site is under a huge oak in an unused part of the property with ‘coal oil’ lanterns hung in the tree, and torches strategically placed, to provide the lighting for the evening. Terrain permits sort of anamphitheater effect for those observing the degree.

If you are interested in observing the Civil War ‘Battle for Liendo’, come earlier in the day. A partial list of the day’s events include: 9:30 artillery demo; 10am Ladies tea at the gazebo, period dress to participate, be there to observe; 11am Mounted Calvary, Infantry Tug-of-War, and Dismounted Calvary competitions; 1:00 Grand Review, & The Battle. Entrance feefor the civil war event is $10 per person but Masons coming to eat and attend lodge may check in at the registration tent for a no-cost (donation only) pass, beginning at around 3 pm.

Food will be available; in fact, Hempstead and Waller Lodges have been food vendors to the public (their fundraiser) for a number of years at this event. Expect a choice of delicious items such as turkey legs, BBQ plates& sandwiches, hamburgers and lots of other foods.

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